"presley" wrote in message
...
Red tape keeping much of military on sidelines

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/htm...me.xml&items=6

I couldn't agree with this more. Whose job was it to cut through that red
tape?

I remember the crippling blizzard that we experience in Ohio around 1976.
Of course it was nothing on the scale of this disaster, but it was life
threatening and shut down the entire state. The governor set up a command
center and personally directed the emergency operation. He instructed
stranded people on the interstates to break into closed rest areas and weigh
stations to get shelter and water. He made periodic statement to the media.
I think that is what Bush should have done. He should have convened all the
cabinet members and military authorities in the situation room and
authorized what ever it took to save lives. Damn the red tape. He had the
ability direct the military to do what ever it takes. After all, he has no
problem assuming authority to suspend civil rights, to sneak into homes to
spy on people, to declare people "enemy combatants" and ship them into
seclusion without even notifying their families. He diverted funds from the
war in Afghanistan to prep for war in Iraq without any authority. Using the
resources of the people to save lives is hardly a risky action. True
leaders know when to act and assume risk, disregard criticism, and accept
responsibility. This president chose to vacation, eat cake, strum his
guitar, and press his failed quest to strip the last vestige of a safety net
for the very same impoverished souls who were dispatched to their death due
to his careless indifference.